Judge Brett Kavanaugh, President Trump’s second U.S. Supreme Court nominee, is unlikely to commit during his Senate confirmation hearings next week to recusing himself from any legal cases stemming from investigations of the president, according to a report.
“Pledging a decision on a particular matter or case — including the decision whether to hear the case — for political reasons, like obtaining confirmation votes, would violate the bedrock constitutional principle of judicial independence,” White House deputy press secretary Raj Shah told ABC News. Shah is helping to shepherd Kavanaugh through the confirmation process.
Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee, however, are expected to press Kavanaugh on his legal positions regarding executive authority given that the federal appeals court judge may have to hear arguments over whether a sitting president can be subpoenaed amid special counsel Robert Mueller’s probe.
Kavanaugh has written on the topic based on his experience as a lawyer who assisted independent counsel Kenneth Starr in reporting his recommendation that former President Bill Clinton be impeached, and later as an aide to the George W. Bush administration.
“Having seen first-hand how complex and difficult that job is, I believe it is vital that the President be able to focus on his never-ending tasks with as few distractions as possible,” Kavanaugh wrote in a 2009 Minnesota Law Review article, referring to lawsuits and investigations.
Although his comments seem to advocate for greater presidential powers, he added that presidents should face the consequences of any alleged misdeeds after they leave office because “no one is above the law.”
Those thoughts contradict a 1998 memo he wrote to Starr, advising that Clinton should be pushed to provide “full and complete” testimony concerning his sexual relationship with former White House intern Monica Lewinsky, drawing speculation about possible questions.
While the Democrats’ line of inquiry may offer good political theater, their parliamentary ability to permanently block Kavanaugh’s appointment is limited.
Kavanaugh’s highly anticipated hearings are scheduled to start Tuesday.
